Aerial. Stanley Jesudowich Photo, Devore Assoc. Landscape Architects
Elegant home design photo in New York

Media room with large wall-mounted display, speakers, and chandelier lighting. Out of Sight Home Technologies Inc., Waukesha.
Example of a mid-sized mountain style open concept dark wood floor home theater design in Orlando with beige walls and a media wall

Built for the Bluff, A Sea Ranch Home is Remade from the Inside Out The house had always been grounded, on an ocean bluff at The Sea Ranch. It sits unencumbered, adjacent to one of the most dramatic stretches of the Sonoma coast with protected commons meadow to the east, uninterrupted Pacific views to the west, and a bluff trail running alongside. What it lacked was the feeling of home, one that could hold up its own against the natural landscape. The owners are entrepreneurs with deep involvement across tech, real estate, and development and they know how things are built. The Sea Ranch house had been in their lives for years, a second residence and a place for family to gather. Built for a different time, it felt more compromising than comfortable. Sitting in a closed off nook, the kitchen fit one cook at a time and turned its back on the rest of the house. The entry was dim and compressed, divided by a structural column that presented itself at exactly the wrong moment. The primary suite was small relative to the view outside it. A large rear bedroom sat behind a lowered ceiling with a bathroom that had never been added. The house was certainly worth the trouble of doing it right. What followed was not one project but four, each with its own design challenge, each addressed over a period of time. Where the House Meets the Ocean The most complex piece of the project, in both structural and spatial terms, was the kitchen expansion. The existing room was a single-person galley squeezed in as an afterthought with no meaningful connection to the dining room, the living space, or the deck outside. To make it useful for a family that cooks and gathers, it needed to grow outward into an existing patio and flow into the rooms around it. A big challenge was the roofline. Several planes at different pitches and angles converged directly where additional volume was needed. A new form had to join that geometry without reading as a correction. The solution found the simplest possible connection between the existing angles, a roofline that from outside the structure, appears entirely original. From the bluff trail where the addition is visible, there is no discernible seam. Inside, the kitchen is now open to the living and dining rooms without interruption. A large sliding glass door connects the space onto the rear deck. The deck itself was expanded and oriented so that the body of the house shields it from the coastal wind which is a common consideration that determines whether outdoor space at The Sea Ranch actually gets used. The result is a room that works for large family gatherings where no one feels cutoff, and one that makes the boundary between being inside and outside easy to ignore. Welcoming Light A structural column stood at the convergence of eight distinct roof planes in the entry. It was load-bearing, but it was also the reason the entry had always felt like a hallway rather than a welcoming arrival. With the structural engineer, a custom steel connector was designed to receive beams from six separate directions, redistributing the load through a single new continuous beam. The column was surgically removed. Three triangular skylights were then cut into the roof above, their shapes drawn from the existing geometry of the planes around them. The entry is now bright and open. The skylights feel native to the structure because they follow the logic already present in the roof. Two Suites, Two Views At opposite ends of the house, the two bedroom suites were each reconfigured, and each found a different way to introduce more of the landscape into the room. An addition to the primary suite extended the structure outward to create a wraparound plan with a loop from the bedroom through bath and closet that had not been possible before. The expansion opened a slot view from the tub and shower toward the ocean. The view is precise and private. The ocean view is present and deliberate. The rear bedroom absorbed an adjacent storage room to transform it into a full second suite with a vaulted ceiling, a large bathroom with a tub, a shower, and a sauna. A private fenced garden courtyard sits just beyond the glass bringing the outdoors inside. The tub was placed so that, looking past the courtyard and through the bedroom beyond, the ocean is visible at the far end. It is a long view and it makes the room feel larger and more settled than its footprint would suggest. Glass on Four Sides, Fire at the Center The main living and gathering room had always been caught between two competing facts: glass on four sides meant exceptional views but at The Sea Ranch, it also meant a cold room. A 360-degree cylindrical fireplace was added at the center on a raised stone base, providing radiant heat in every direction and giving the room a focal point around which a group naturally orients itself, whether that means two people at the end of the day or the whole family after dinner. Owners Who Picked Up the Tools The owner was not a passive client. they came with construction knowledge, specific ideas, and the desire to be an active part of the process, a dynamic that other architects may had found difficult, which Klopf Architecture accepted as an asset. They took it upon themselves to complete some of the work during construction, including the installation of a new radiant heating system beneath the floors. The radiant system added to the older and less-desirable forced-air setup. At The Sea Ranch, that change matters as the house sits close enough to the ocean and moving air competes with the sound of it, where radiant heat does not. Solar panels were added to the roof as part of the new system. Insulation was upgraded throughout the walls, roof, and crawl space. The house that had always had the right setting now holds warmth the way a house on the bluff should. They were also deeply involved in the design and selections throughout, and the finished house reflects both of them in ways that are specific rather than generic. The process took longer and moved through more iterations than a more arms-length relationship might have allowed. The result is more defined and personal because of it. The Landscape Holds Priority Every exterior decision was shaped by The Sea Ranch Design Standards, which require that buildings defer to the landscape around them rather than compete with it. Because this house sits on the bluff and is visible from the public trail, the additions faced a close review. Existing materials were matched. Geometries were resolved. The additions had to become indistinguishable from the original building. From the trail, the house reads exactly as it always has — low, cedar-clad, secondary to the meadow and the water. The setting holds priority. Inside, the house has been remade. Klopf Architecture Project Team: Geoff Campen and Trenton Jewett
Contractor: Shawn Bettega Construction
Photography: ©2025 Mariko Reed
Year Completed: 2023
Location: The Sea Ranch, CA

The lovely family of four had a small bathroom to share. Their shower was inadequate for the 6'4" homeowner. In order to provide them a more functional bathroom for them all, space was taken from one of the large bathrooms. We bumped the wall out a couple feet to provide these homeowner's with a large shower and linen cabinet storage space. They now have a beautiful transitional space that fits their needs. Initially the homeowner's were looking at a neutral beige palatte but fell in love with this grey color scheme. The grey, blue, and brown border tile helps pull all the colors together. The gorgeous Blue Pearl countertop provides a new element of color and complements the grey bathroom Mike Kaskel

Large double shower with body sprays. Shower has matte black hardware, frameless glass enclosure, and bench seat.
Double shower - mid-sized modern 3/4 beige tile and ceramic tile porcelain tile, multicolored floor and single-sink double shower idea in Philadelphia with recessed-panel cabinets, gray cabinets, a one-piece toilet, gray walls, an undermount sink, granite countertops, a hinged shower door, gray countertops and a built-in vanity

Inspiration for a mid-sized modern white tile and subway tile porcelain tile and beige floor drop-in bathtub remodel in Los Angeles with furniture-like cabinets, white cabinets, a two-piece toilet, pink walls, an undermount sink, granite countertops and a hinged shower door

Upward view of the shower setup. The tile was carried up to the ceiling.
Double shower - mid-sized modern 3/4 beige tile and ceramic tile porcelain tile, multicolored floor and single-sink double shower idea with recessed-panel cabinets, gray cabinets, a two-piece toilet, gray walls, an undermount sink, a hinged shower door, gray countertops and a built-in vanity

Upward view of the shower setup. The tile was carried up to the ceiling.
Inspiration for a mid-sized modern 3/4 beige tile and ceramic tile porcelain tile, multicolored floor and single-sink double shower remodel with recessed-panel cabinets, gray cabinets, a two-piece toilet, gray walls, an undermount sink, granite countertops, a hinged shower door, gray countertops and a built-in vanity

Natural Flagstone place over concrete. The goal was not to keep the natural shape of the flagstone and minimize any cuts. Project also included stained concrete and reconstructing an outdoor grill/bbq, new plants and irrigation setup.

The kids and neighbors all agree... This is better than any movie theater experience! Sony A90J 83" OLED TV on a low profile tilting mount Marantz Pre-Amp and Matching Amp for more power Savant control system with the new X2 Remote to control the entire home. Owner provided Bowers & Wilkins 602 Anniversary Edition Left, Center, Right and Rears (not pictured). In the ceiling we installed 4 Episode Speakers setup for Dolby Atmos which really take this room to the next level!

Upward view of the shower setup. The tile was carried up to the ceiling.
Double shower - mid-sized modern 3/4 beige tile and ceramic tile porcelain tile, multicolored floor and single-sink double shower idea with recessed-panel cabinets, gray cabinets, a two-piece toilet, gray walls, an undermount sink, a hinged shower door, gray countertops and a built-in vanity

Say goodbye to your makeshift work-from-home space and create your dream custom built-in desk ✨ Working from home has become a regular practice for many of us, so it’s important to have a functional space that meets your needs. Customize every detail, from the storage to the color to the wood grain. Visit the link in our bio to start designing today!

A luxurious kitchen setup featuring Taj Mahal Quartzite, adding elegance and sophistication.
Kitchen - kitchen idea in Chicago

Natural Flagstone place over concrete. The goal was not to keep the natural shape of the flagstone and minimize any cuts. Project also included stained concrete and reconstructing an outdoor grill/bbq, new plants and irrigation setup.

Upward view of the shower setup. The tile was carried up to the ceiling.
Inspiration for a mid-sized modern 3/4 beige tile and ceramic tile porcelain tile, multicolored floor and single-sink double shower remodel with recessed-panel cabinets, gray cabinets, a two-piece toilet, gray walls, an undermount sink, granite countertops, a hinged shower door, a built-in vanity and gray countertops

Upward view of the shower setup. The tile was carried up to the ceiling.
Example of a mid-sized minimalist 3/4 beige tile and ceramic tile porcelain tile, multicolored floor and single-sink double shower design with recessed-panel cabinets, gray cabinets, a two-piece toilet, gray walls, an undermount sink, a hinged shower door, gray countertops and a built-in vanity

The kids and neighbors all agree... This is better than any movie theater experience! Sony A90J 83" OLED TV on a low profile tilting mount Marantz Pre-Amp and Matching Amp for more power Savant control system with the new X2 Remote to control the entire home. Owner provided Bowers & Wilkins 602 Anniversary Edition Left, Center, Right and Rears (not pictured). In the ceiling we installed 4 Episode Speakers setup for Dolby Atmos which really take this room to the next level!

Upward view of the shower setup. The tile was carried up to the ceiling.
Example of a mid-sized minimalist 3/4 beige tile and ceramic tile porcelain tile, multicolored floor and single-sink double shower design with recessed-panel cabinets, gray cabinets, a two-piece toilet, gray walls, an undermount sink, a hinged shower door, gray countertops and a built-in vanity

Upward view of the shower setup. The tile was carried up to the ceiling.
Double shower - mid-sized modern 3/4 beige tile and ceramic tile porcelain tile, multicolored floor and single-sink double shower idea with recessed-panel cabinets, gray cabinets, a two-piece toilet, gray walls, an undermount sink, a hinged shower door, gray countertops and a built-in vanity